CAC Men's Lacrosse Preseason Webcast

Many men’s lacrosse experts and fans point to Salisbury University during the conversation of the best in the Capital Athletic Conference.  And it’s not surprising that the CAC coaches would do the same in a pre-season poll, considering the Sea Gulls have won 14 conference championships and played in 12 national championship games (winning eight titles) in the last 16 years.

The Sea Gulls, ranked among the top four in two national pre-season magazine/website polls, gained seven first-place votes and 63 total points to lead the CAC pre-season coaches poll, in which coaches could not vote for their own team.  SU, with several returning All-CAC and All-Americans returning to the lineup, are the team to beat.

But York has steadily climbed up the national radar under fourth-year coach Brandon Childs and is seen as the top challenger for Salisbury.  The Spartans, who played in the 2014 CAC title game and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in team history, received two first-place votes in the pre-season CAC poll and ranks second with 58 points.

Frostburg State and Christopher Newport, both relative newcomers to the CAC, are also gaining confidence and respect.  The Bobcats, in just their fifth varsity season, ranked third in the conference pre-season poll with 48 points while the Captains, second-year members of the CAC, are fourth in the CAC poll with 39 points.

St. Mary’s, just two seasons after upsetting top-seeded Salisbury in the CAC title game, and Mary Washington, an NCAA Tournament qualifier in 2014, both figure to battle the top four teams for home playoff games in the 2015 CAC postseason.  With 37 points in the pre-season poll, St. Mary’s ranked fifth, just two points behind CNU, while Mary Washington gained 30 points to place sixth in the poll.

The challengers for playoff positions are led by Marymount, which collected 25 points in the preseason poll, followed by Wesley (16 points) and second-year member Southern Virginia (8 points).

Here is a look at each team heading into the 2015 season:

After qualifying for the CAC Tournament in the program's first year in the league, CHRISTOPHER NEWPORT will look to build upon that performance in 2015. Led by head coach Todd Boward, the Captains return seven starters from last year’s squad, including leading scorer Brooks Billings and All-State selection Brenden Dwyer. CNU also welcomes back Matt Hayden, who started 15 games in goal last year, and Nick Kirschke, who ranked second in the CAC with a .578 faceoff percentage.

After finishing 14-6 in his fifth year at the helm of FROSTBURG STATE’s men’s lacrosse program, head coach Tommy Pearce returns five of his top six leading scorers from a year ago. Three-time team captains senior attack Devin Colegrove (27 goals, 35 assists) and senior defensemen Zach Burkhardt (45 ground balls) and Paul Newman (27 ground balls, 21 caused turnovers), along with junior attack Spenser Love (35 goals, six assists) look to lead the Bobcats to a conference championship in 2015.

Coming off its greatest season in school history, MARY WASHINGTON will need to replace a strong group of players lost to graduation, including All-American Luke Dick.  Senior defenders John Mulcahy and Travis Peed will look to again lead the defense, with the graduation of all-state goalie Zach Del Grosso. Senior Greg Smith will look to help fill the void offensively, along with several newcomers who have shown flashes of excellence in early action.

MARYMOUNT looks to build on its best season yet under head coach Jon Reynolds’ reign, having notched a 9-8 record in 2014.  The Saints lose several key cogs from last season, but return a wealth of experience in its 14-man senior class.  Seniors Nico Burns and Matt Justice headline the returners in terms of points, each having registered 32 over the course of last year’s campaign.  Senior Tyler Dasilva collected a second-best 54 groundballs last season from the midfield, while classmate Chris Madison led the squad with 24 caused turnovers.  The Saints also return four of their top-five leading scorers from a year ago.

ST. MARY’S welcomes nine newcomers for the 2015 season as they look to return to their championship form from two years ago. Offensively, the Seahawks are solid with the return of 2013 All-CAC selection, Matt Tarrant (19g, 11a), Conor Jordan (18g, 10a), and Will Lerch (16g, 9a). Phil Cappello (21 GB, 9 CT) and Grant Lowenfeld (15 GB, 7 CT) will help Joey Casey (7.37 GAA) keep opponents out of the cage.

SALISBURY comes into 2015 after its fourth national championship game appearance in five years and 18th Capital Athletic Conference championship in 2014. The Sea Gulls have a host of returning players that look to keep the team on track for the goal of again competing for a national title, including first-team All-American defensive midfielder Preston Dabbs and second-team All-American defender Knute Kraus.  Returning to the attack is SU’s top scorer from last season in Mike Kane, who netted 48 goals last year. The midfield returns Thomas Cirillo, an All-American honorable mention, and Sean Fitzgerald, who both had break-out years in 2014. They finished sixth and fifth on the team in points with 38 and 44, respectively. Both players will headline the first midfield line for the Gulls this season.

The 2015 SOUTHERN VIRGINIA squad consists of 18 new faces and 10 returners.  Rejoining and leading the squad are sophomore Mike Bangerter and junior Marcel Blake. Bangerter contributed 11 goals and 39 ground balls last season. Defensively, Blake led the team with 43 groundballs on the year.  Midfielder Ciaran Giroux showed great signs of potential as a freshman in 2014 and looks to continue the momentum.  Several newcomers are expected to make contributions to the program this season, including defenders Greg Gowdy and Colin Maxfield, who will anchor the back line with returner Derek Purvis to provide support for goalie Derek Lamb. At midfield, Mike Anderson, Patrick Reece and Ryan Larsen will be pivotal to the team’s success, while Casey Rich, Russell Anderson and McKenzie Turnbull will have a significant influence on the effectiveness of the Knight attack.

WESLEY returns three of its top five scorers from a year ago, including its biggest playmaker in junior Sam Seibert. Also returning on offense is senior James Moss and junior Jack Redefer who combined for over 30 goals last season.  The back end looks to be the strength of the squad with a trio of longtime starting defenders returning in senior Kyle Funk, captain Josh Ladd and junior Eric Bohns in front of senior goalkeeper Sam Kennedy.

YORK enters the upcoming season ranked 11th in the USILA poll after a record setting 16-5 campaign in 2014. Spartan head coach Brandon Childs welcomes back all three starters in the attack as All-CAC performers Tyler Hutson and Andrew Gamble are joined by Tyler Davis as York's top three scorers combined for 125 goals, 72 assists and 197 points. Defensively, the Spartans bring back All-CAC defender Josh Kluver and CAC Rookie-of-the-Year Garrett Barker. All-CAC goalkeeper Caleb Abney returns for his junior year after finishing 2014 with a 7.30 goals against average and a save percentage of .615.  Childs will look to build his midfield around returners Andrew Thomas and Joseph Joseph. Joseph finished last year with 23 points on 14 goals and nine assists. Thomas was limited to 14 games due to injury but still earned All-CAC accolades for the second year in a row. Sophomore Jake Katchmark returns at the X for York after winning 54% of his 402 face offs last year.